Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

Ingredients:

25 Ginger Snaps, finely crushed (about 1-1/2 cups)

1/2 cup finely chopped pecans

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted

4 pkg. (8 oz. each) Cream Cheese, softened

1 cup sugar, divided

1 tsp. vanilla

4 eggs

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

Pinch ground cloves

Directions:
1.Heat oven to 325°F. A silver 9-inch springform pan is best to use. Mix ginger snap crumbs, pecans and butter; press onto bottom and 1 inch up side of pan for the crust

2. Beat softened cream cheese, 3/4 cup of the sugar and the vanilla with electric mixer until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended. Remove 1-1/2 cups of the batter; place in small bowl.

3. Stir remaining 1/4 cup sugar, the pumpkin and spices into remaining cream cheese batter. Spoon half of this pumpkin batter into crust; top with spoonfuls of half of the reserved plain batter. Repeat layers.

4.Cut through batters with knife several times for marble effect.

5. Bake for 5 min. to 1 hour 5 min. or until center is almost set. (Test by gently shaking the pan. If the cheesecake is done, it will be set except for an approximately 2-1/2-inch area in the center that will be soft and jiggly.)

6. Cool for a least an hour. Run knife or metal spatula around rim of pan to loosen cake. Refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving. Store leftovers in refrigerator

Soft M&M Cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 cup butter (softened)
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups M&M's

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, mix sugar, eggs, butter , and vanilla thoroughly. Add flour, salt, and baking soda to creamed mixture. Blend well. Add 3/4 cup of M&M candies.
2. Drop dough by tablespoons onto cookie sheet. Slightly push a few candies on top of each dough ball with remaining candies.
3. Bake at 350 degrees F for 8-10 min

Peanut Butter Heavens

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp salt
2 cups peanut butter
2 cups confectioners sugar
2 cups chopped walnuts or pecans
2 1/2 cups graham crackers crumbs

1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons shortening

Directions:
1. Cream together the butter, vanilla, salt and peanut butter. Stir in 2 cups of the confectioners' sugar, nuts and all but 1/2 cup of the graham cracker crumbs. Add the last 1/2 cup of graham cracker crumbs only if needed; otherwise it may be difficult to mold the balls.
2.Form the mixture by hand into 1 inch balls. Roll each ball in the remaining cup of confectioners' sugar. Set the balls in a single layer on a cookie sheet and refrigerate until firm (about an hour).
3.To Dip Balls In Chocolate: In the top half of a double boiler; melt the chocolate chips and shortening just until the chips are melted. Remove from heat but leave over hot water. Insert a toothpick into the chilled balls or use 2 straws in a chopstick fashion and dip into the melted chocolate until coated. Set on waxed paper until hardened.

Mississippi Mud Cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup milk chocolate morsels
1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. miniature marshmallows

Directions:
1. Microwave semisweet chocolate morsels in a small microwave-safe glass bowl at HIGH 1 minute or until smooth, stirring every 30 seconds.

2. Beat butter and sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until blended after each addition. Beat in vanilla and melted chocolate.

3. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; gradually add to chocolate mixture, beating until well blended. Stir in chopped pecans and 1/2 cup milk chocolate morsels.

4. Drop dough by heaping tablespoonfuls onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Press 3 marshmallows into each portion of dough.

5. Bake at 350° for 10 to 12 minutes or until set. Remove to wire racks

Chocolate PB Cupcakes

Ingredients:

1 pkg. (2-layer size) devil's food cake mix

1 cup cold milk

1 pkg. (4-serving size) vanilla Instant Pudding

1/2 cup peanut butter

1-1/2 cups thawed Whipped Topping

4 squares BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate

1/4 cup peanuts

Directions:
1. Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
2. Prepare cake mix and bake in 24 paper-lined muffin cups, as directed on package. Cool only 30 min. (Cupcakes need to still be warm to fill.)
3. Pour milk into medium bowl. Add dry pudding mix. Beat with wire whisk 2 min. or until well blended. Add peanut butter; beat well. Spoon into small freezer-weight resealable plastic bag or pastry bag; seal bag. (If using plastic bag, snip off one of the corners from bottom of bag.) Insert tip of bag into center of each cupcake; pipe in about 1 Tbsp. of the filling.
4. Microwave whipped topping and chocolate in small microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1-1/2 min. or until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring after 1 min.
5. Dip the top of each cupcake into glaze. Sprinkle evenly with peanuts. Store cupcakes in refrigerator.

Review:
very yummy, if you like the peanut butter chocolate combo then you will LOVE these. A big hit with the chocolate lovers of my family.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups uncooked regular oats
1 package semisweet chocolate mega morsels
1 cup chopped toasted pecans

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Beat butter and sugars at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla, beating well.
3. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine flour, bakingsoda, and salt in a bowl, stirring well. Add oats; stir well. Add to butter mixture; stir until well blended. Gently stir in morsels and pecans. Drop by rounded tablespoons 2 inches apart onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
4. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes or until brown around edges. Cool on pan 2 to 3 minutes or until firm. Remove cookies from pan; cool on wire racks.

Review:The mix of the creamy chocolate, the crunch of the nut and the texture of the oatmeal, make these cookies so very delicious. You must try a batch to see for yourself :)

Oreo Truffles

Ingredients:

1 pkg. Oreo Chocolate Sandwich Cookies, finely crushed

1 pkg. (8 oz.) Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened

2 pkg. (8 squares each) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate, melted

Directions:
1. Finely crush cookies to a fin crumb
2. Mix 3 cups of the cookie crumbs and the cream cheese until well blended. Shape into 42 (1-inch) balls.
3. Dip balls in melted chocolate; place on waxed paper-covered baking sheet. (Any leftover melted chocolate can be stored in tightly covered container at room temperature and saved for another use.) Sprinkle with remaining cookie crumbs or other decoration such as holiday sprinkles or nuts. 4. Refrigerate 1 hour or until firm. Store any leftover truffles in tightly covered container in refrigerator.

Rating: Soooo yummy! If you are a chocolate lover then you will go crazy for these. These disappeared quickly at my Christmas party.